This movie is about the Bondurant brothers in Franklin County, Virginia, who run whiskey to Chicago during prohibition. The eldest brother, Forrest, played by Tom Hardy, believes the brothers are invincible. Here are the basic problems with the film:
1. Shia LaBeouf as the youngest brother is supposed to be an immature young man, a coward, who hides behind his violent brothers. During the space of the film he supposedly grows a pair and becomes - what, a criminal? A righteously angry, yet responsible, young man? This transformation is unbelievable, poorly written and poorly acted.
2. Jessica Chastain plays Maggie, a Chicago dancer, who walks into Forrest's restaurant one day looking for a job. She is ridiculously out of place in this hick crossroads restaurant, and in this movie, and her character is not remotely believable, no matter how great Chastain's acting is.
3. Guy Pearce plays a revenue agent, and he plays the agent as an OCD germaphobe who wears white leather gloves to beat people up, dyes his hair and wears perfume. It is nuts. What the hell has happened to Guy Pearce? Why did the director not see that this was a ridiculous way to play the character?
4. Tom Hardy - I love this guy and he is a great actor. Here he plays an extremely violent man who barely speaks - mumbles his words and grunts - and yet falls in love with Maggie, treats her gently, and wears ratty old cardigans. It's weird. Each character in this movie is so oddly written and poorly developed that I am going to get the book. I want to see if Hollywood totally screwed up this story.
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